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Longtime Republican political strategist Boyd Marcus is endorsing Terry McAuliffe (D) for Virginia governor and will advise his campaign, the AP reports.
“Marcus was an architect of Republican former Gov. Jim Gilmore’s 1997 successful campaign. He also has advised the campaigns of U.S. House Majority Leader Eric Cantor.”
“You might be surprised to hear this, but I actually like it better this way.”
— Anthony Weiner (D), quoted by BuzzFeed, on the very few reporters still covering his New York City mayoral race.
“One of Maine’s three voting members of the Republican National Committee and six other members of the Maine State Republican Committee have resigned and left the party, lambasting Gov. Paul LePage, U.S. House Speaker John Boehner and other Republicans for abandoning what they said are key principles for libertarians and conservatives,” the Portland Press Herald reports.
Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX) filed his personal financial disclosure report which listed an asset valued at over $1,000,000,000, Political Moneyline reports.
Two days later, McCaul filed an amendment to that report indicating that the amount should be listed as only $1,000,000.
A new Public Policy Polling survey in Ohio shows a toss up race for governor, with Ed FitzGerald (D) holding a slight lead over John Kasich (R), 38% to 35%.
Key findings: “The closeness of the race is more of a reflection on Kasich than FitzGerald. He has a negative approval rating with 42% of voters approving of him to 47% who disapprove. That represents a 10 point net decline from our last Ohio poll in November when he was at 45/40. FitzGerald meanwhile remains unknown to most voters in the state with 62% not having an opinion about him one way or the other- among those who do have one 20% see him positively and 18% in a negative light.”
Charlie Cook:
“It’s difficult to understand why any Republicans on Capitol Hill would
like their odds in any kind of budget showdown this fall that could
result in a government shutdown. Very simply, they would be going into a
game with an incredibly weak hand, and their odds of winning would be
quite small.” More: “While Obama’s numbers are hardly impressive, they
are still much better than those for congressional Democrats, and they
aren’t even in the same time zone as the bleak numbers for Republicans
in Congress. This being the case, who goes into this fight with the
least credibility? The answer is Republicans in Congress… It’s a time
for Republicans to be realistic and for both sides to be adults–and
allow a reasonable deal to be reached.”
The Buffalo News
reports that Rep. Tom Reed (R-NY) has been late 38 times paying his
property taxes since 2005.
National Journal: “Having paid $3,486.51 in late fees, Reed is
now on the right side of the law, but as a member of the committee that
actually writes tax law it’s more than embarrassing. At least he has
plenty of company. For it turns out that several members of Congress
aren’t so into writing that check to the government.”
The other offending members: John Runyan (R-NJ), Ann
McLane Kuster (D-NH), Jim Renacci (R-OH), Vern Buchanan (R-FL), and
Steve Southerland (R-FL).
Maggie Haberman:
“Tabloid headlines. Personal dramas. Organizational disarray.
Score-settling between rival factions documented in news accounts like a
soap opera. Does this have a familiar ring? No one — or mostly no one —
truly believes the swirl of headlines surrounding Bill and Hillary
Clinton in the summer of 2013 should lead to a grand conclusion about
whether another iteration of a Clinton campaign can be run effectively,
free of the internecine warfare and incessant drama that marked her 2008
bid. But if Clinton and her supporters were hoping to allay those
doubts well ahead of a possible 2016 run, the past few months have not
been helpful.”
Josh Rogin:
“The U.S. government has decided privately to act as if the military
takeover of Egypt was a coup, temporarily suspending most forms of
military aid, despite deciding not to announce publicly a coup
determination one way or the other, according to a leading U.S. senator…. The office of Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT), the head of the
appropriations state and foreign-operations subcommittee, [said] Monday
that military aid to Egypt has been temporarily cut off.”
A new Pew Research poll finds that 51% of Americans think aid to Egypt should be cut off and 50% think President Obama’s response has not been tough enough.
First Read notes the GOP effort to defund President Obama’s health care law “has gone … nowhere. GOP leaders (like Mitch McConnell, John Boehner, and Eric Cantor) aren’t on board. Neither are some stalwart conservative senators (like Rand Paul and Ron Johnson).”
“There are two reasons for this. One, the votes simply aren’t there, especially with Democrats in control of the Senate and White House. Two, Republicans see a government shutdown over Obamacare as Democrats’ best opportunity to upend the 2014 apple cart that currently favors the GOP. Consequently, GOP leaders have turned to another idea — using the sequester and debt limit to delay the health-care law’s individual mandate (though it’s doubtful that the votes are there, too). Still, this “defund Obamacare” movement could have some political repercussions. Does McConnell get penalized in his primary race over this? And is it something that Cruz can campaign on if he prepares for a White House run?”
National Review looks at how New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) has worked to overcome the damage that his embrace of President Obama in the waning days of the 2012 presidential election did with many establishment Republicans.
“Christie’s inner circle has taken the complaints seriously, fearing their implications ahead of the 2016 presidential election. For the past nine months, they have quietly labored behind the scenes to woo the party’s skeptical power brokers. Their maneuvers have included huddles with Republican moneymen, off-the-record powwows with conservative journalists, and late-night conversations with past backers.”
“Officially, such sessions with national Republicans and figures of the right are considered part of Christie’s reelection campaign, but his playbook is filled with the broader, tacit push for his political rehabilitation.”
A new Monmouth University/Asbury Park Press Poll finds that Cory Booker (D) leads Steve Lonegan (R) in the October 16 special U.S. Senate election, 54% to 38%.
Tennessee state Rep. Joe Carr (R) is expected to challenge Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-TN) in next year’s Republican primary, the Tennessean reports.
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) said that he will renounce his Canadian citizenship, ABC News reports.
Said Cruz: “Now the Dallas Morning News says that I may technically have dual citizenship. Assuming that is true, then sure, I will renounce any Canadian citizenship.”
He added: “Nothing against Canada, but I’m an American by birth and as a U.S. senator, I believe I should be only an American.”
Maine Gov. Paul LePage (R) told a group of Republicans at a fundraiser last week that President Obama “hates white people,” the Portland Press Herald reports.
“Two Republican lawmakers confirmed the comment when asked directly by a Press Herald reporter, but asked that their names be withheld for fear of political retribution. Each said LePage talked about how Obama could have been the best president ever if he highlighted his biracial heritage. But, LePage said, the president hasn’t done that because he hates white people.”
A new National Republican Senatorial Committee poll shows Sen. Mary Landrieu (D) leads Rep. Bill Cassidy (R) by four points, 45% to 41%.
Meanwhile, a Harper Polling survey shows Cassidy ahead by two points, 47% to 45%.
California Assemblyman Tim Donnelly (R) says “a new California law allowing transgender students to choose which restroom and locker room they use is part of the reason at least one of his sons will not return to his local public school this fall,” the San Jose Mercury News reports.
He said the privacy rights of students “will be replaced by the right to be ogled” and will
encourage inappropriate behavior among hormone-driven teenagers.
Two “inside, anonymous sources” tell KGTV that lawyers for San Diego Mayor Bob Filner (D) were in a mediation session an attorney for the city and attorney Gloria Allred, who is representing at least one of the women who has accused Filner of sexual harassment.
A retired federal judge is presiding over the mediation, which was designed to include a review of a potential resignation by Filner.
Taegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites. He also runs Political Job Hunt, Electoral Vote Map and the Political Dictionary.
Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.
Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country.
Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.
Goddard is the owner of Goddard Media LLC.
“There are a lot of blogs and news sites claiming to understand politics, but only a few actually do. Political Wire is one of them.”
— Chuck Todd, host of “Meet the Press”
“Concise. Relevant. To the point. Political Wire is the first site I check when I’m looking for the latest political nugget. That pretty much says it all.”
— Stuart Rothenberg, editor of the Rothenberg Political Report
“Political Wire is one of only four or five sites that I check every day and sometimes several times a day, for the latest political news and developments.”
— Charlie Cook, editor of the Cook Political Report
“The big news, delicious tidbits, pearls of wisdom — nicely packaged, constantly updated… What political junkie could ask for more?”
— Larry Sabato, Center for Politics, University of Virginia
“Political Wire is a great, great site.”
— Joe Scarborough, host of MSNBC’s “Morning Joe”
“Taegan Goddard has a knack for digging out political gems that too often get passed over by the mainstream press, and for delivering the latest electoral developments in a sharp, no frills style that makes his Political Wire an addictive blog habit you don’t want to kick.”
— Arianna Huffington, founder of The Huffington Post
“Political Wire is one of the absolute must-read sites in the blogosphere.”
— Glenn Reynolds, founder of Instapundit
“I rely on Taegan Goddard’s Political Wire for straight, fair political news, he gets right to the point. It’s an eagerly anticipated part of my news reading.”
— Craig Newmark, founder of Craigslist.